Practice with a Teacher – Yes, but where?

After having a few discussions with individuals about this, I sometimes wonder if some Zen centers can get a bit territorial in the regions they wind up serving. I’ve heard stories of some teachers “encroaching on the territory” of another teacher. I’ve heard complaints that there are too many in certain areas, though I can guarantee you we do not suffer from that here in Ohio.

For Christians, one can drive through almost any town in the United States and find one or more churches in that area. They are quite literally everywhere. Buddhists simply don’t have this luxury and yet so many of our traditions emphasize the importance of a teacher-student relationship – in Zen it can even be said to be absolutely integral (having that one-on-one, intimate relationship).

I understand that many communities likely don’t even want to take on the risk, because it is very likely that new practice centers might fail in areas of the country where the population has very little exposure to Buddhist teachings. There is also the problem of money – it takes money to purchase a building, furnish it, pay the bills, etc. It takes a lot of energy to build up a community and to maintain it, requiring that there be dedicated individuals invested in seeing it work. And, moreover, many have zero experience or training in how to work with groups or put them to work. Moreover, some teachers do not like to share the responsibility much. Talented individuals could be “put to work” as it were, but their skills go to waste because the sharing of power is not something the autocratic Zen teacher appreciates.

For many of us in the country, it’s either a very long drive (gas is quite expensive these days) or even a flight, and with record unemployment levels and a sinking economy, many of us simply don’t have the luxury to travel like that. So, what is the solution if you want to practice with the Sangha but there is nobody in your area?

More Zen centers. Not less. No, this is not about proselytization. I feel this is about our commitment to helping the world. I recall talking to one teacher who complained about there being too many centers in his area, thus diluting the overall turnouts of any of them and making it harder for everyone to survive. I can see his concern and yet, if Zen practice is going to really transform this world, we need more of them in more areas of the country. The last time I checked, the entire state of Wisconsin does not have a Zen center (UPDATE: I’ve now realized I had my W’s confused! I meant Wyoming). Say there is a young guy or girl working at McDonald’s who read this really awesome book on how to practice Zen Buddhism; it really helped them along and they want to make it “official.” Maybe they’re raising a couple of kids and struggling to pay the bills from month-to-month. These people are expected to somehow get in their cars and drive several hundred miles in order to be “legitimate Buddhists?” When I hear some teachers say that that is an excuse, their not traveling absurd distances to pay absurd retreat prices, what I observe is a lack of willingness to really observe that geography and economics are a real problem in this equation.

It’s sort of a strange cycle we get into – some teachers probably think, “Well, there is already a practice location in the northern half of state X,” as if that somehow is serving the population there. Teachers don’t want to encroach upon what has already been established there and, because there may or may not be enough of a demographic that might show interest, we won’t even bother trying to build it – to bring diversity to the scene.

Some teachers say, “Practice is simple – find a teacher.” What about the ethics of the teacher? How does the Sangha there function? In short – is it a good place? A kind of mantra that no distance is too great if you’re serious about this practice permeates in Zen culture in the West, as if someone earning minimum wage can just plop their kid in the back of the car and drive 400 miles to sit with a group for a couple of hours. Seriously?

Take the San Francisco Zen Center as an example. The San Francisco Zen Center is a wonderful place that has produced a multitude of teachers and, yet, very few of them ever leave the nest. There is a huge conglomerate of priests and Dharma successors there who remain at one of their three practice locations. I don’t think this is anything intentional but, perhaps, it would be helpful if more left and started up places like they did in Texas at the Austin Zen Center. There is a huge portion of this country which is simply underserved and we can blame the students for not walking 1000 miles on foot to get there I suppose, though I think that kind of view on the predicament is rather lopsided and, frankly, unrealistic.

To the centers out there who are capable of expanding their reach, who have the finances at their disposal to do so – I implore you to think on ways to really make the practice accessible so that those who are left without the option of a weekly Sangha practice do not feel marginalized and dismissed. I know it’s a corny quote from a rather silly movie on baseball but, it’s true.

“If you build it, they will come.”

Maybe they will not come. Maybe the area will be predominantly conservative, or fundamentalist Christian, opposed to weird religions that have no God. That’s a real possibility. However, if Zen Buddhism is to make any inroads and have a real impact on a world spiraling in suffering, it is precisely this sort of risk that must be taken.

About Adam Kō Shin Tebbe

Adam Kō Shin Tebbe (Kō Shin meaning Shining Heart) is editor at Sweeping Zen and is a blogger for Huffington Post's Religion section, writing mainly on topics of interest to Zen practitioners. Before starting the website in 2009, Adam trained to be a chemical dependency counselor. Adam is currently working on a documentary on Zen in North America (titled Zen in America) with a projected release date of 2017.

At Sweeping Zen we value comments from the community. Please help us uphold a high standard of integrity in these conversations. Before posting, please take a moment to imagine that the person you are addressing is there in front of you and respond from that place. Try and be respectful and considerate of others.

Please strive to not belittle others in the conversation. If necessary, take the time to disassemble their ideas without taking the easy road of personal insults. Personal insults only serve to undermine our own arguments and lower the level of discourse.

About Sweeping Zen

Established in 2009 as a grassroots initiative, Sweeping Zen is a digital archive of information on Zen Buddhism. Featuring in-depth interviews, an extensive database of biographies, news, articles, podcasts, teacher blogs, events, directories and more, this site is dedicated to offering the public a range of views in the sphere of Zen Buddhist thought. We are also endeavoring to continue creating lineage charts for all Western Zen lines, doing our own small part in advancing historical documentation on this fabulous import of an ancient tradition. Come on in with a tea or coffee. You're always bound to find something new.

Sweeping Zen is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com. Amazon and the Amazon logo are trademarks of Amazon.com, Inc. or its affiliates.